Block 1.7 – Organizational Psychology
Problem 1. What drives them?
Motivation theories
Motivation: The cognitive decision- making process, through which social directed behaviors
initiated, energized, directed and maintained. (Alternatively, an internal state that leads to
engaging in specific behaviors.)
Drives: An innate, biological determinant of behavior activated by deprivation e.g.
curiosity, sense-making, order and meaning of situations, effectiveness or
competency and self-understanding.
Motives: A socially acquired need activated by the desire of fulfillment.
Definition of motivation:
Perspective 1: It can involve direction (choice of specific behaviors when other
possible behaviors are present, intensity (the amount of effort someone puts on a
certain task) and persistence
Perspective 2: Desire to acquire or achieve some goal and that derives form needs,
desires and wants of a person.
Explore motivation:
1. Content theories: Goals, what are the main goals/outcomes that motive of our
behavior?
2. Process theories: Decisions, why do we chose to pursue certain goals?
3. Job enrichment theories: Influence, how can we motivate someone to work harder?
Self- determination
Cognitive evaluation theory: Intrinsic and extrinsic rewards. (separate from SDT)
Intrinsic motivation (autonomous motivation): Valued outcomes or benefits that come from
the individual, such as feelings, satisfaction, competence, self-esteem and accomplishment.
→Self-determination behavior.
The most desirable outcome, especially autonomy
, Block 1.7 – Organizational Psychology
Problem 1. What drives them?
Extrinsic motivation (controlled motivation): Valued outcomes or benefits provided by
others such as promotion, pay increase, bigger office or desk, praise and recognition.
External regulation
Introjected regulation :person internalize external demands
Identified regulation :person accepting an external demand as being of personal
importance
Integrated regulation: person not only accepts external rewards as important but as
an expression of self (work is a big part of who I am)
Need theories
Content theories where motivation is deriving from people’s desires for certain things. They
are not that strongly supported any more.
Need
Hierarchy
Theory
(Maslow)
1st level: Physiological
needs
2nd level: Safety needs,
security, shelter
3rd level: Love needs,
love affection, affiliation
4th level: Esteem-needs,
self-respect, respect of
others.
5th level: Self-actualization, fulfilling personal goals and reaching one’s potential.
A need should be unmet to be motivating. In addition, there can be differences in every
individual and some could consider high-order needs as more important than low-level ones.
Person like a machine=automatic unconscious
Two-factory work
Motivation comes from the nature of the job itself and not from external rewards or job
conditions. Not valid but influential.
